Continuous improvement and development
NHS Direct has been delivering NHS 111 pilot services for around two years in four areas of the country – Nottingham, Lincolnshire, Luton and Lancashire.
This has given us valuable insight which we are sharing with commissioners where we have been selected to provide NHS 111 in order to drive continuous service improvement.
NHS 111 has the potential to significantly improve the way urgent care is delivered and the way patients access services. We will be working with local commissioners to discuss new and innovative ways of managing demand on critical services such as 999 and A&E and ensure that there are a range of suitable alternatives in place.
NHS Direct has also been sharing its experience of delivering a multi-channel service. More people now access NHS Direct’s services online than they do over the phone so we know a drive towards self-care and self-serve channels, such as the web, is important in order to manage demand and respond to the changing patterns in public access to healthcare.
We know the Department of Health is committed to developing an NHS 111 digital service to sit alongside the NHS 111 telephone service. A cross-disciplinary team of representatives from the NHS, the Department of Health, NHS Choices and NHS Direct are working on a project to consider options for delivering NHS 111 through digital channels and to test these through a prototype. NHS Lincolnshire, one of the first NHS 111 telephone pilots, is now helping to trial the NHS 111 digital prototype.
The project team is working with local GPs and other health professionals to ensure any patients that use the prototype get great care throughout their journey and provide feedback on how the NHS 111 digital service should look.
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